Hermeneutics, at its most basic level, is "an approach to understanding the meaning of texts, laws, language, historical artifacts, and pedagogy" (Slattery, 2006, p. 115). Hermeneutics is the process used to understand written information and interpreting human practices, events, and situations (Crotty, 1998). Is it possible to have a standard model for interpreting what a writer is trying to convey? Is it responsible to teach and train students to view and interpret texts in simplistic and traditional ways? In the increasingly diverse and multicultural environments we share the responsibility for equitable and responsible perspectives and critiques has grown. Hermeneutics provides the avenue for these critiques and perspectives.
True understanding of any text is difficult. This difficulty is precipitated by a number of reasons and often leaves most people leaving interpretation and meaning making to an authority figure, such as a professor, priest, or politician. The problem with this approach is that these authority figures, and indeed any reader, may have different interpretations of the text. In order to attain the goal of understanding the original meaning of the text, one must psychologically reconstruct the author; the interpreter must project her-or himself inside the author and reconstruct the author's original imposition of a univocal sense (Schrift, 1990). According to Feldman (2000), deconstruction leads to relativism and nihilism: if the meaning of every text is un-decidable, they reason, then a text can mean anything at all – no one meaning is better or worse than any other. The process of uncovering the deep, layered meanings of a text for oneself is given a special label called hermeneutics.
“The use of hermeneutics has grown from its roots in the interpretation of Greek classical literature” (Von Zweck, Paterson, & Pentland, 2008). The word, hermeneutics, takes its root from the Greek god Hermes. Hermes was the messenger of the gods and the use of a deity's name to describe this practice is no coincidence. Hermes was often charged with delivering equivocal messages that required him to interpret the meaning of the gods. The label of Hermes was chosen carefully to indicate the importance of interpreting texts. Hermes not only explained and interpreted the messages of the gods, but he was also often deceptive in his role as messenger of the gods (Slattery, 2006, p. 130).
The fact that Hermes was seen as a trickster is important to note because part of what hermeneutics seeks to uncover is the deception, prejudices, and injustices created by so-called leaders in society who sometimes use historical interpretations to further hegemony and maintain their position of leadership and wealth. For instance, Antonio Gramsci, a Marxist theorist, compared the proletariat and the bourgeoisie and their particular power to describe the idea of hegemony. Gramsci also referred to hegemony as the process of leadership between dominate and inferior classes where the powerless were pushed to accept their lower class positions. This idea is well described by what mimics the mischievous ways of Hermes. (Mastroianni, 2002) Another possible connection between the rash behaviors of Hermes and hermeneutics is offered by Smith when he warns that "students of hermeneutics should be mindful that their interpretations could lead them into trouble with 'authorities'" (quoted in Slattery, p. 141), just as Hermes found himself in trouble with the gods.
Photo 2. Hermes
When speaking of hermeneutics, it is important to understand that it is a view or rational construction of the observer. Farkas (1983) explains, "…hermeneutics used to be the study of methods used in interpreting texts which, because they belonged to a different culture, were difficult to interpret" (p. 263). Texts used in biblical scriptures often had philosophical significance to theories. Hermeneutics became a philosophical approach focusing on the interpretive activity of men. Jardine (1992), professor of political analysis, writes:
"The returning of life to its original difficulty is a returning of the possibility of the living Word. It is a return to the essential generativity of human life, a sense of life in which there is always something left to say, with all the difficulty, risk, and ambiguity that such generativity entails. Hermeneutic inquiry is thus concerned with the ambiguous nature of life itself." (Slattery, 2006, p. 115)
Different perspectives of this philosophy often entail different opinions, beliefs, and values. Past experiences, cultural norms, and family dynamics influence values and behaviors. Religious experiences and denominational regulations govern mental processes and shade interpretations of religious text. "Hermeneutics, in its broadest formulation, is the theory of interpreting oral traditions, verbal communications, and aesthetic products" (Slattery, 2006, p. 130).
History and Evolution of Hermeneutics Throughout history hermeneutics has been used primarily for understanding religious and canonical writings. People are influenced by social, cultural, and psychological factors; understanding this early hermeneutic scholars attempted to determine the original meanings of religious texts (Slattery, 2006). A full understanding of these influences on an author's writing, and the original message, has evolved over time as well. Proper hermenutics can help ensure what the writer is trying to say and avoid errors of interpretation (Hommel, nd.). Hermeneutics, as a process, has shifted from focusing on text from a scientific approach of determining meaning to a postmodern understanding represented through a cyclical interpretation (Slattery, 2006).
Illustration 1. Various Contexts
As a scientific form of questioning during the nineteenth century traditional hermeneutics was almost exclusively used for understanding religious texts and non-canonical writings within the historical period in which they were written (Slattery, 2006, p. 133). These texts were investigated with “the belief that absolute meaning could be uncovered” (Slattery, 2006, p. 132). A focus was placed on developing an “authoritative text interpretation”, particularly for religious texts (Slattery, 2006, p. 132). For example, the Torah was interpreted using the allegorical method to determine meaning though linguistic and grammatical components (Slattery, 2006, p. 133). The purpose of such interpretations was to attempt a true understanding of the author's intentions. Scholars were in essence attempting to clear the muddy waters found in the distance between an author's original meaning and a contemporary readers cloudy interpretations. Like the childhood game of telephone the original meaning from the author's original time is often unclear.
An early example of hermeneutics use in religious texts can be found in early Christian interpreters attempts to confirm their belief salvation rested in Jesus Christ. Different groups began to interpret the books of the bible in multiple ways: historically, grammatically, and spiritually. Additionally, during the 5th century, St. Augustine of Hippo introduced a philosophy of language in which the “sign” literally pointed to the “thing” (Slattery, 2006, p. 133). This was the beginning of the development of semiotics, the study of language and how it relates to signs, symbols, and historical representation (Slattery, 2006, p. 133). Postmodern semioticians have a different point of view and use critical semiotics in which “attention is given to cultural conventions or codes, that in turn, generate the signs that serve as the basic unit of communication" (Slattery, 2006, p. 133). Like hermeneutics, semiotics has also become an analysis of power and the ways in which meaning is constructed.
In the 13th century St. Thomas Aquinas became an authority in the use of literal interpretations of texts, similar to St. Augustine. These interpretations became the “accurate bearer of Truth” (Slattery, 2006, p. 134). In keeping with his tradition, the Roman Catholic Church became the “ultimate decision on the criteria and the validity of results of biblical interpretation” (Jeanrond, quoted in Slattery, 2006, p. 134). Aquinas’s views made it easier for church authorities to control biblical interpretations.
During the Protestant Reformation, the reliance on literal, authoritative interpretations of biblical texts began to wane. Schleiermacher (1768-1834) rejected all extratextual authorities as illegitimate and attempted to have individuals interpret the scriptures. He introduced the idea that hermeneutics is the "art of understanding the sense of the text" (Slattery, 2006, p. 136). This paved the way for curriculum theories that included autobiography, auto ethnography, and respect for the judgment of teachers and interpretation of students in the classroom. In the 1970s, Gadamer drew attention to pre-understandings, which influence interpretation of texts. Gadamer suggests that, "we must approach texts with our pre-understandings, suspend our prejudices, and engage in dialogue" (Slattery, 2006, p. 137). He also suggested that the universal human task is "genuine speaking", or saying something to actually reach another human person.
Although literal and authorative interpretations have waned, personal Bible studies still occur and a need for interpretation still exist. Today some scholars of the Bible believe that it affirms its own clarity (Hommel, n.d.). However, interpretation does not occur without cultural and historical perspectives in mind (Hommel, n.d.). The fact of the matter is our own beliefs and experiences mold our interpretations. Hommel uses ten principles in which to protect Biblical interpretation from personal beliefs and experiences, but for time sake we will discuss a few. He states that generally we as individuals take things at face value which is a common since approach and, therefore, should be used (Hommel, n.d.). Scripture should not be taken out of context to prove a particular point of interest (Hommel, n.d.). Thirdly, plain scriptures can be used as a guide to interpret less clear scripture (Hommel, n.d.). Interpretation of scripture will never be exact but applying these principles and the other principles we can lessen the error of interpretation (Hommel, n.d.). However, the real message of the Bible is not how we interpretet it, but as Gadamer suggests, one of its greatest uses is in learning how to be genuine with spoken words so that other people can be reached.
This relates to the idea of education as Bildung, or growth and development, which "emphasizes what is done to individuals rather than what individual persons actually do" (Slattery, 2006, p. 137). Gadamer's model of hermeneutics sought to open up more possibilities rather than close them like traditional models. Later, in the 1980s, Ricoeur argued that the sense of the text must be validated by explanation. He believed that a "movement from a structuralist science to a structuralist philosophy is bound to fail" (Slattery, 2006, p. 137). Personal horizons merge with the text in Ricoeur's view, which moves hermeneutics to a more human understanding. This led to three concerns of hermeneutics, which would be connected by Haggerson and Bowman: understanding, explanation, and critical assessment.
Matthew Fox, a former member of the Dominican order who was expelled in the 1990s, used hermeneutics to interpret the bible in ways that went against the Catholic Church's interpretation. One major way was to say that humans are basically good, while traditional doctrine teaches that we are born into sin and can only remove this burden by following church doctrine. Fox reached this conclusion by hermeneutically re-examining scripture and Aquinas’s work through a contemporary lens. The work of Fox will hopefully lead to more varied hermeneutical interpretations in theology and other areas. His different hermeneutic view of theological texts mirrors the interpretations taking place in education and curriculum.
Hermeneutics & Education According to Slattery (2006), "The art and science of interpretation is the central enterprise of school curriculum" (p. 116). Hermeneutics connects with education on several levels and in multiple categories. "A hermeneutic perspective (the art of interpreting and understanding across differences) should be considered in any educational discussion," teachers, administrators, and district personnel often face a variety of circumstances in which decisions can determine what the outcome will be: positive, negative, or neutral (Zoreda, 1999, p. 3). Slattery (2006) believes that "educators must understand the multiple approaches to hermeneutics that influence their curricular decisions" in order to provide an engaging curriculum for students (p. 123). According to Wilhelm Dilthey, as cited in Boyles, reconstruction must take place to unite the past with the present. The true task of hermeneutics is seen through this reconstruction (1994). Gadamer, as cited in Boyles, proposes teachers use hermeneutics in the classroom by altering their traditional roles of depositors of information to that of intellectual interpreters. Rather than educators possessing one absolute meaning of a text, students can construct their own meanings of literature based off their personal experiences (1994). Literacy in a school's curriculum poses another example of hermeneutic decision. The resulting philosophical problems about the meaning and value of aesthetic entities are compounded when the activity of literary criticism enters the picture (Hoy, 1982). Validating multiple student interpretations within classroom discussion exhibits hermeneutic controversy. Likewise, decisions on which texts to include in the syllabus, which interpretations to examine, and which interpretations to ignore are also hermeneutic decisions (Slattery, 2006). Shaun Gallagher (1992) maintains that one task of hermeneutics is to "identify the different factors, including the epistemological, sociological, cultural, and linguistic factors, that condition the process of interpretation (p. 5). According to Gallagher (1992), interpretation is a process wherein no one element exists in itself and understanding literacy involves bridging multiple circumstances. David Hoy (1982) argues that the methodological questions raised in hermeneutics probe into the very possibility of thinking historically. Thus, "whether history is viewed as continuous or discontinuous (involving radical paradigm shifts) will make a difference to the kinds of explanations a discipline gives and to the extent to which it searches for causes and general principles" (p.7).
Today universities have incorporated multicultural teacher education (MTE) courses in their teacher pre-service programs, that take on a hermeneutic disposition. MTE courses follows the hermeneutics beliefs of Hans-Georg Gadamer. The flexibility of hermeneutics allows pre-service teachers to be better equipped with the skills to address the ever-changing American schooling demographic. Hermeneutics allows teachers to grasp the idea of transformation and openness in their teaching. Multiculturalism and hermeneutics together encompass different perspectives and personal experiences that coincide within a community or a classroom (Pickett & York, 2011).
Photo 3: Multiculturalism and Heremeneutics
Flexibility is important when speaking of education. Predictions can be made, but often, unforeseen circumstances can be brought upon by moods, emotions, differences, and experiences, due to the dynamic nature of the classroom environment. Classrooms are influenced by the culture, background knowledge, and ideologies that students bring with them into an ever broadening racial, ethnic, cultural, and special needs classroom (Lin, Lake, & Rice, 2008). "The postmodern understandings of hermeneutics as an investigation into the ambiguous nature of being and knowledge now inform and enrich contemporary curriculum paradigms" (Slattery, 2006, p.115). At the same time teachers must be aware of the background knowledge that they bring to their own interpretations that their students may not possess yet. Robert Ryley’s article about hermeneutics in the classroom discusses an instance in which he felt his students were misinterpreting a poem because they lacked the background knowledge about the poet’s style that he had. “And the teacher will be a better teacher for understanding that the source of his authority is not necessarily his exquisite sensitivity to poetic values or his God-given ability to intuit the Truth at sight, but his experience as a reader. It is this experience that the teacher ought to share with his students, neither permitting their ignorance to lead them into fan-tastic error, nor demanding that they discover inside the poem what can only be discovered outside of it” (Ryley, 1974, p. 50).
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, opened the door to the high-stakes testing, meaning that there are important consequenses for students and educators resulting from test performance (Spring, 2010). According to Ken Goodman one of the most alarming facts of the No Child Left Behind Act is that it is unconstitutional, because it leaves education to the states. It established a national curriculum and methodology in reading and math (Cited by Spring, 2010). Taking this concern into consideration, it can be determined that in the current-high stakes testing model of education, a popular type of curriculum used in schools is “teacher-proof” curriculum. Teacher-proof curriculum does not provide teachers with the ability to develop lessons that promote meaningful philosophical discussions. According to Joel Spring (2010) "the controlling power of standards and tests determine what will be taught in the classroom, ensure that teachers teach the content specified in the state's academic standards...If students do poorly on high-stakes tests, then teachers and school administrators are blamed. For this reason, both teachers and administrators are motivated to ensure that classroom instruction complies with academic standards and provides students with the specific knowledge and skills required by the tests" (Spring 2010). Hermeneutic inquiry is essential in the development of curriculum in order to provide students with the tools necessary for “understanding the text, the lived experience, and the self in relation to the Other” (Slattery, 2006, p. 141). As an educator if one thinks about Hermeneutics before writing lesson plans it might help to consider the diversity of the classroom and one’s own ability to create creative and interactive lessons. Hermeneutic inquiry should be the main reason for teachers to become creative regardless of the curriculum, and the pressures of standardization and accountability.
Another example of how No Child Left Behind has impacted curriculum and how the teacher proof curriculum prevents teachers from developing lessons that promote meaningful philosophical discussions was found in an issue of the San Antonio Express-News. According to the newspaper article a 64-page report developed by the Social Studies Faculty Collaborative of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board stated “the controversial curriculum standards approved by the State Board of Education last year represent a widespread pattern of neglect of college readiness skills” (Scharrer, 2011). Moreover, according to Erekson (2011) who wrote the report with others emphasized how the State Board of Education ignored college readiness standards and to help social science teachers sort through the confusing curriculum standards. For example, Erekson (2011) pointed out that new curriculum standards asks students to provide information at the knowledge and comprehension level concerning curriculum standards for the Declaration of Independence. The standards simply ask students to list colonial American grievances, to understand their purpose and importance and to explain the significance of several dates (Erekson, 2011).
Erekson (2011) suggested that the standards should guide the students towards higher level thinking by addressing American Revolution history by asking students to analyze questions such as : How did colonists transition from thinking of themselves as British to thinking of themselves as Americans? This way the students now have something to think about before responding to such a question versus answering questions that require a laundry list of memorized dates, locations, and people. By answering such thought provoking questions it also gives the students an opportunity to reflect on their heritage and what it means to be an American if they happen to be the children of immigrants or immigrants themselves. In the arena of hermeneutics such emphasis on teaching students to provide more than a one-sided analysis provides the students with so much more by way of allowing them to compare and contrast the transition from being British to becoming American than just remembering what July 4, 1776 represents. Moreover, this fits into what Slattery stated that “museums, like school curricula, are complex places of learning that can be used either to advance critical thinking or to support the status quo of the political and cultural agenda” (Slattery, 2006, p. 118). In other words, by depriving the Smithsonian Institute’s Air and Space director Martin Harwit the opportunity to represent the bombing of Hiroshima from a different perspective so that it may stimulate discussion amongst visitors or amongst a class of high school students, state boards of education win by stifling teenage thought and creativity by expecting the students to only memorize that on August 6, 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan.
By adding a discussion of the bombing of Hiroshima to their curriculum social studies teachers provide the students an opportunity to formulate their own ideas about whether it was necessary for the United States to drop two atomic bombs on Japan. Based on Slattery's contention, it was not Harwit's goal to influence anyone about how World War II should have ended, but to "allow a discussion of the various historical accounts in museums, classrooms, and school curriculum" (Slattery, 2006, p. 119). This should also be the mindset of the educators in social studies when presenting a historical lesson. Educators can also add historical pictures or videos of reasonable content of the blast to the lesson to stimulate student curiosity and thirst for historical knowledge in a way that makes hermeneutics applicable in the curriculum.
Video 1. Atomic Bomb and Hiroshima Video 2. Hiroshima After the Bomb Color Footage 1945
Changes in the environment can affect the atmosphere of the school. Methodology, varying with individuals or groups of students, creates a unique life-world tangent in the classroom. Within the many shades of gray, one must consider that the "selection of textbooks and educational media reflects prejudice in favor of particular styles, methodologies, politics, or worldviews" (2006). Knowledge is no longer finite; curriculum is now open to reflections acknowledging that "everything requires recursive interpretation" (Slattery, 2006, p. 141). The opening of curriculum to reflection and criticism affords students and teachers a new, greater opportunity to exercise power in the classroom, which the high-stakes testing environment does not provide.
In education, postmodern hermeneutics gives the power of interpretation to students. Teachers and the curriculum no longer decide how texts and other media will be interpreted in the classroom. Because of this it is important that teachers understand and value where their students are coming from. Dimi Metro-Roland provides an excellent hypothetical situation to describe this process in which a middle-aged teacher attempts to gain an appreciation for rap music in order to better understand his students. (Metro-Roland, 2010) “This, in turn, puts the teacher’s own self-understanding and prejudices at play… In the process, the very lens through which he sees and experiences the world has changed, even if only a little” (Metro-Roland, 2010, p. 17). Cross-cultural understanding requires risk because educators can't be entirely sure where the conversation will lead or the ways that their own views and prejudices will be challenged (Metro-Roland, 2010). Hermeneutics also allows the traditional curriculum and structure of knowledge to be challenged as well.
Postmodern hermeneutics may be seen as a threat to those in the old guard of education and curriculum, so it is critical to proceed with caution. However, "Philosophical hermeneutics and deconstruction should be understood as complementary postmodern philosophies, as mutually supportive descriptions of the hermeneutic situation" (Feldman, 2000, p.3). Hermeneutics in education is controversial because it gives everyone the power to interpret texts. The teacher is no longer the sole decision maker in the understanding of texts, but instead students also become engaged in the text. Hermeneutics in education provides students the means to analyze and find meaning in a text on their own. The goal of the hermeneutic process is the pursuit of deeper understanding (Slattery, 2006). Students must now learn to engage the curriculum. They must not simply learn how to memorize facts and dates but must be allowed to explore history from multiple viewpoints.
In order for students to be able to develop the ability to understand and decipher different kinds of text, they must be given the opportunity to become active participants of their own learning. To achieve this goal, students not only need to be exposed to a high vairety of literature, but also, must be given the opportunity to be involved with content through manipulation of materials and most important social interaction. Chiari and Nuzzo (2010) present a correlation between Hermeneutics and the Constructivist approach; "To the extent that psychological constructivism views the person as a meaning-generating being, and interpreter it has a point of contact with hermeneutics, defined, as it is, as the theory of interpretation of meaning. However, the relationship between constructivism and hermeneutics con go even further" (Chiari & Nuzzo, 2010).
Illustration 2. Interpretation
Rasking (2002) quotes Chiari and Nazzo (1996) explaining a category of constructivism known as Hermeneutic Constructivism; "Hermeneutic constructivists do not believe in the existence of an observer independent reality. They consider knowledge a product of the linguistic activity of a community of observers. Thus, there can be as many knowledge systems as there are groups discursively negotiating them. In hermeneutic approaches to constructivism, the roles of language, discourse, and communication become central in understanding how knowledge systems are developed and maintained. There are many forms of hermeneutic constructivism, but they all share certain fundamental premises (Rasking, 2002). By allowing the students to interact with each other, and by providing experiences that challenge their thinking, students will be able to experience higher self efficacy for learning. By creating an environment in the classroom focusing on the Constructivist and Hermeneutic approach, teachers will give their students an opportunity to succeed academically.
Hermeneutics, Controversy, and Defining it?
Hermeneutics is controversial. It gives the power to interpret texts to all, not just a select few authority figures. This weakens the hold the authority figures maintain on their constituents. No longer are the "lay people" forced to rely upon the interpretations of these authorities. Rather, hermeneutics provides them with an approach to analyze and find meaning in a text on their own. "National ideologies, religious practices, financial arrangements, and personal freedoms, among other things, may be challenged or restricted" (Slattery, 2006, p. 125). The interpretive process is also problematic, as the interpreter may try to make sense out of a text by applying contemporary mores and standards when creating their understanding of a text; conversely, other interpreters may take a "textualist" or "intentionalist" approach, whereby the interpreter attempts to understand the text from the point of view of the original writer of the document. Neither approach is wrong nor right. However, both can lead to varying interpretations and understandings. As a result, "hermeneutic interpretation is not only controversial, but it can be violent and deadly at times" (Slattery, 2006, p. 124).
Illustration 3. Hermeneutics
According to Schrift (1990) Fredrich Schleiermacher and Wilhelm Dilthey are credited with taking the first steps toward developing a general hermeneutic methodology (Schrift, 1990). At its core, hermeneutic inquiry is creative. "Hermeneutic inquiry is a creative act, not just a technical function" (Slattery, 2006, p. 141). It is a circular "process" that Schleiermacher identified as having three main elements. First, it is grounded upon the creative nature of the interpreter. Next, it requires an interpretation of the meaning of language and language's signs and symbols (semiotics) and a recognition of pivotal role languages place in understanding. And third, it requires and grows from the interplay of the interpreters in part ("text") and in whole ("the socio-historic reality") during the interpretive process (O'Leary, 2007). "It is circular because it involves a constant movement from us, the interpreter(s), to the interpreted and back again, thereby implying that every interpretation is itself reinterpreted. It is indeterminate because that loop of interpretation has no end" (Gregory, 2009). Hermeneutics gives the interpreter creative power over language and ideas. Schrift (1990) explains that Dilthey, for his part, follows Schleiermacher in calling for a general hermeneutics, but so doing, he broadens the scope of hermeneutical applications....Dilthey criticizes Schleiermacher for limiting hermeneutics to the analysis of understanding which is a reshaping or reconstruction on the basis of its relationship to the process of literary creations. Dilthey regards hermeneutics as having a wider epistemological application than that acknowledged by Schleiermacher, and he broadened the scope of the methodology of understanding to facilitate the acquisition of knowledge of all aspects of mental life (Schrift, 1990).
Six ways to Describe Hermeneutics
Slattery, Kransy, and O'Malley (2007, p. 543-549) have identified six ways to describe hermeneutics:
Traditional theological hermeneutics. This is an interpretation of canonical texts by a person of authority that deciphers the meaning of the text within their own historical, cultural, and social context. Post-modernists would say this is impossible "because the world view of contemporary sociteies cannot objectively or completely replicate the ancient cosmologies and subjectivities in which the text was aesthetically produced" (pg. 543).
Conservative philosophical hermeneutics. Accroding to Schleiermacher and Dilthey, an interpreter should be able to remove himself from his own historical context in order to understand what the author of a text meant, as well as move away from any historical limitations so that an objective truth can be reached. Schleiermacher said that texts must be allowed to speak for themselves (pg. 544).
Contextual hermeneutics. This branch of hermeneutics takes into account the social and historical context of the text while it is being interpreted. Hans-Georg Gadamer called the social and historical context "the horizons" of the interpreters and the act of understanding what the message the text is trying to convey as "the fusion of the horizons" (pg. 545).
Reflective hermeneutics. This branch argues that in order for an understanding of the text to be found, one must use explanatory procedures that help make sense of the text. Ricoeur was a strong proponent of this branch. Ricoeur looked at the problem of language and organized them into five themes that would constitute the criteria of textuality (pg. 547).
Poststructural hermeneutics. In this type of hermeneutics interpreting is more like playing or dancing, or ruminating through words rather than through application of methods. It is a process of critique and deconstruction that is endless. Poststructural hermeneutics was inspired by Nietzche and Heidegger, and practiced by Kristeva, Baudrillard, Derrida, and Foucault. It is "believed that original meaning is unattainable and best we can do is stretch the limits of language" (pg 548).
Critical hermeneutics. This branch deconstructs economic systems and social metanarratives by uncovering the ideological nature of the beliefs and values that underlie these systems. "The goal is to promote distortion-free communication and a liberating consensus (pg. 548)." This branch is based on ideas from Marx, Freud, Habermas, Marcuse, Gramsci, and the Frankfurt school of social criticism.
Elements of Hermeneutics to Consider
There are several important factors to take into consideration when using hermeneutics. First, hermeneutics is often used to analyze historical events. This can be extremely difficult because history can look very different depending on who is looking at it and on how the details of the historical event are presented. Fish (2005) asserts that '"any conclusion you reach about the intention behind a text can always be challenged by someone else who marshals different evidence for an alternative intention"' (Slattery, 2006, p. 126). Hermeneutics presents the historical account as accurately as possible; taking into consideration all viewpoints and factors of the original situation. This is a very difficult task to accomplish, which is why “historical analysis varies from text to text and nation to nation" (Slattery, 2006, p. 116). Depending upon the way historical curriculum is presented in our schools, this information “can be used either to advance critical thinking or to support the status quo of the political and cultural agenda" (Slattery, 2006, p. 118). Schools must strive to present different viewpoints of history, even if at times this information might be controversial or painful. Historical curriculum in the classroom should not aim to settle any historical debates, but rather allow for a discussion of various historical accounts. A perfect of example of social studies curriculum to allow for various historical accounts would be to give the students an assignment asking them if they believe slavery in another form exists in the United States today. Of course one would have to take into consideration that the assignment would concern our southern neighbors in Mexico and how the encomienda system (indigenous people required to provide tribute and free labor to an encomendero, or land owner) (Merrill and Miro, 1996) established by the Spanish Crown after they conquered Mexico and how migrant farm workers are treated today. This assignment should not to be given in the context to settle any historical debates but to open up the minds of the students (especially if the subject matter directly relates to them: video 3) as to how certain historical occurrences repeat themselves and for them to formulate their own conclusions if they believe slavery exists in another form in the United States today.
Photo 4. Encomiendas in New Spain Video 3. Fingers to the Bone: Child Farmworkers in the United States
A second element to consider is what material is actually included in the curriculum and how this material is presented to the student. “Educators must understand the multiple approaches to hermeneutics that influence their curricular decisions, conscious or subconscious, and must reflect deeply on the social, political, historical, and global implications of their interpretive acts in order to provide an appropriate, engaging, and just curriculum for students” (Slattery, 2006, p. 123).Teachers are charged with helping students to recognize and navigate the intentional and accidental biases, prejudices, viewpoints, and values that accompany every text. Teachers must also alert students to the fact that these same biases and values are present in people, including community and national leaders, teachers, and classmates. The individual who decides what material and interpretations to include in school curriculum and how to present this information to students holds the power. Hermeneutics would aim to include material from multiple sources and then present this information to students so that they might generate their own philosophies about the information. In January of 2011 news broke that a book editor was going to take the word "nigger" out of Mark Twain's classic work Huckleberry Finn. This book was written by Twain in the late 1800s during a time when the "n" word was used often in the south. If educators are going to teach students about biases, prejudices, viewpoints, and values that are part of every writers work, then we must provide textual sources that have not been altered from their original form. If we are providing "watered-down" versions of literature then what conscious or subconscious message are we sending our students. Hermeneutics allows for students to develop their own interpretations of text to better understand what ideas they are being presented. Educators should not silence the voices of authors because they are writing from their perspectives and students should have the opportunity to draw their own conclusions.
Finally, one must remember that different people can view the exact same information and then each take the information in completely different directions. Every individual thinks of information in very different ways because of their own experiences, beliefs, and value systems. This does not make one person’s view better than another’s. It just means that each person has the right to view information differently. If administrators and teachers would collaboratively work through "a more horizontal than vertical conformation with an atmosphere of collegiality--democratic cooperation--instead of a marked polarity of leader vs. followers." the results would yield shared meaning-making based on joint discussion (Zoreda, 1999). Hermeneutics allows each individual this right, and this is one reason that hermeneutics can be so controversial. In many instances, societal leaders are seen as having the correct answer or knowing the right procedure, but "who decides which higher authority is legitimate" (Slattery, 2006, p. 127)? Leaders seldom react mildly when they are questioned about the basis for their proclamations of fact or the legitimacy of their positions of power, so the questioning and interpretive nature of hermeneutics often incites conflict. “Postmodernism contends that truth with a small 't' rather than a capital 'T' is a more appropriate understanding for the postmodern world” (Slattery, 2006, p. 123) because it allows individuals to experience their own subjective truth without imposing it on others as an absolute, objective Truth. Gadamer stated "[t]o understand someone else is to see the justice, the truth, of their position. And this is what transforms us" (Kerdeman, 1998).
Postmodern Hermeneutics
Haggerson and Bowman bring these three concerns together in a postmodern context. As we seek understanding, we examine multiple explanations and critical assessments from different viewpoints. Haggerson and Bowman contend that knowing is a continuum - there is not end point. Rather, knowing and understanding are constantly in flux and change. Knowledge is "provisional, contextual, and temporal" (Slattery, 2006, p. 139). They use the metaphor of a running stream viewed under four paradigms as an explanation for these various viewpoints. In the first paradigm, rational/theoretical, the researcher is on the edge of the stream simply watching while making generalizations and predictions about the flow. In the second paradigm, mythological/practical, the researcher actually experiences the stream in a boat. In the third, the evolutionary/transformational paradigm, the researcher becomes a participant with the river. In the fourth, normative/critical paradigm, the researcher crosses the river and now has an experience to share. Curriculum theorists work through these paradigms to hermeneutically interpret curriculum (Slattery, 2006).
The application of postmodern hermeneutics to curriculum also has impacts on the methods of research and inquiry that are considered acceptable to the community of teachers and other interpreters. The traditional, deductive reasoning approach to research cannot be the only valid viewpoint in a postmodern context. Instead, postmodern hermeneutics requires the recognition that the valuation of deductive research is, itself, based on a set of norms and traditions. This form of reasoning and research cannot be valued more highly than others. As Slattery (2006) states, "no longer will objective, experimental projects that attempt to verify hypotheses for the purpose of articulating generalizations...dominate educational research" (p. 140). Postmodern hermeneutics recognizes and values the importance of subjective understanding. It "conceives of understanding as an ontological (study of being) problem rather than an epistemological (study of knowledge) problem" (Slattery, 2006, p. 130).
The community of interpreters and consumers of the hermeneutic process cannot simply be the bureaucratic and authoritarian figures of traditional academic discourse and curriculum development. Instead, the hermeneutic process requires a more egalitarian model where a community of minds comes together to analyze and reflect on the interpretations set forth by others, correcting and collaborating with each other to create understanding and meaning. In these communities, norms are questioned and power relationships are scrutinized. This cycle of interpretation, uncovering additional norms, and reinterpretation can only take place in a community where all are empowered. Educators and interpreters will come together and "engage each other in the process of understanding the text, the lived experience, and the self in relation to the Other" to develop a curriculum that is empowering and liberating, not "teacher-proofed" and constrained by the objectives and standards of state-mandated tests (Slattery, 2006, p. 141). Perfect examples of this philosophy can be found in the following video trailers:
Video 4. Dead Poets' Society Video 5. Teachers
In the Dead Poets' Society trailer Robin Williams persuades the students to climb on his desk to see life, not from his perspective or anyone else's for that matter, but to see life from their own perspective and quotes Thoreau who said "most men lead lives of quiet desperation" (Robin Williams as cited in Dead Poets' Society, 1989). In other words a community of thinkers become empowered to create understanding and meaning, rather than a community created by one person or one group set in their ways, controlling the actions of others very much like the governing board at the private school where Williams teaches.
In the Teachers trailer Nick Nolte challenges his students to create their own media to symbolize what is wrong with their school. He gives them carte blanche to express their ideas through essays, poems, songs, photos, etc. When one student takes him up on his offer and produces a photo essay of what is wrong with the school, of course it reaches the school paper and lands Nolte in hot water. Moreover, the rest of the scene centers around the argument that the teacher's job is not to reach one student, but to push the students through the system. In the area of interpretation, the clash exists between what one teacher believes and the importance of reaching one student versus the school administration and their interpretation that one student is not worth saving (Teachers, 1984). Note: Only view first five minutes.
Finally, it is important to realize that those who cling to more traditional forms of curriculum development are likely to be resistant to hermeneutics. Hermeneutics "uncovers, interprets, clarifies, deconstructs, and challenges all fields of study" (Slattery, 2006, p. 142). Those who benefit from the power structures already in place in society can be fearful when their place of authority or the source of their power is brought into question. This can lead to danger for practitioners of hermeneutics who must interact with more traditional authority figures in their workplaces. We should all be aware of the possibility of this conflict but it should not deter us from applying postmodern hermeneutics to our work in the classroom.
References
Farkas, V. (1983). Book reviews : Three faces of hermeneutics. Roy J. Howard (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1982). Science Communication, 5 (2), 263-268.
Feldman, S. M. (2000). Philosophical hermeneutics. Philosophy Social Criticism, 26(51), doi: 10.1177/019145370002600103
Kerdeman, D. (1998). Hermeneutics and education: Understanding, control, and agency. Educational Theory, 48 (2), 241-266. doi: 10.1111/j.1741-5446.1998.00241.x
Lin, M. Lake, V. E. & Rice, D. (2008). Teaching Anti-Bias Curriculum in Teacher Education Programs: What and How. Teacher Education Quarterly , 35(2), 187-200.
Metro-Roland, D. (2010). Hip Hop Hermeneutics and Multicultural Education: A Theory of Cross-Cultural Understanding. Educational Studies, 46(6), 560-578.
O'Leary, Z. (2007). The Social Science Jargon Buster: The Key Terms You Need to Know
Raskin, J. D. (2002). Constructivism in psychology: Personal construct psychology, radical constructivism, and social constructionism. In J. D. Raskin & S. K. Bridges (Eds.), Studies in meaning: Exploring constructivist psychology (pp. 1-25). New York: Pace University Press.
Ryley, R. M. (1974). Hermeneutics in the Classroom: E. D. Hirsch, Jr. and a Poem by Housman .College English , 36(1), 46-50.
Schrift, A. D. (1990). Nietzsche and the Question of Interpretation of Hermeneutics and Deconstruction. New York: Routledge
Slattery, P., Krasny, K., O'Malley M.. (2007). Hermeneutics, aesthetics, and the quest for answerability: a dialogic possibility for reconceptualizing the interpretive process in curriculum studies. J. Curriculum Studies, 39(5), 537-558.
Spring, J. (2010). American Education (15th ed.) New York: McGraw Hill.
Zoreda, M. (1999). Hermeneutics, education, and leadership in contemporary society . Paper presented at the Popular Culture Association Annual Conference, San Diego, CA.
Photo 1. The Thinker
Hermeneutics, at its most basic level, is "an approach to understanding the meaning of texts, laws, language, historical artifacts, and pedagogy" (Slattery, 2006, p. 115). Hermeneutics is the process used to understand written information and interpreting human practices, events, and situations (Crotty, 1998). Is it possible to have a standard model for interpreting what a writer is trying to convey? Is it responsible to teach and train students to view and interpret texts in simplistic and traditional ways? In the increasingly diverse and multicultural environments we share the responsibility for equitable and responsible perspectives and critiques has grown. Hermeneutics provides the avenue for these critiques and perspectives.
True understanding of any text is difficult. This difficulty is precipitated by a number of reasons and often leaves most people leaving interpretation and meaning making to an authority figure, such as a professor, priest, or politician. The problem with this approach is that these authority figures, and indeed any reader, may have different interpretations of the text. In order to attain the goal of understanding the original meaning of the text, one must psychologically reconstruct the author; the interpreter must project her-or himself inside the author and reconstruct the author's original imposition of a univocal sense (Schrift, 1990). According to Feldman (2000), deconstruction leads to relativism and nihilism: if the meaning of every text is un-decidable, they reason, then a text can mean anything at all – no one meaning is better or worse than any other. The process of uncovering the deep, layered meanings of a text for oneself is given a special label called hermeneutics.
“The use of hermeneutics has grown from its roots in the interpretation of Greek classical literature” (Von Zweck, Paterson, & Pentland, 2008). The word, hermeneutics, takes its root from the Greek god Hermes. Hermes was the messenger of the gods and the use of a deity's name to describe this practice is no coincidence. Hermes was often charged with delivering equivocal messages that required him to interpret the meaning of the gods. The label of Hermes was chosen carefully to indicate the importance of interpreting texts. Hermes not only explained and interpreted the messages of the gods, but he was also often deceptive in his role as messenger of the gods (Slattery, 2006, p. 130).
The fact that Hermes was seen as a trickster is important to note because part of what hermeneutics seeks to uncover is the deception, prejudices, and injustices created by so-called leaders in society who sometimes use historical interpretations to further hegemony and maintain their position of leadership and wealth. For instance, Antonio Gramsci, a Marxist theorist, compared the proletariat and the bourgeoisie and their particular power to describe the idea of hegemony. Gramsci also referred to hegemony as the process of leadership between dominate and inferior classes where the powerless were pushed to accept their lower class positions. This idea is well described by what mimics the mischievous ways of Hermes. (Mastroianni, 2002) Another possible connection between the rash behaviors of Hermes and hermeneutics is offered by Smith when he warns that "students of hermeneutics should be mindful that their interpretations could lead them into trouble with 'authorities'" (quoted in Slattery, p. 141), just as Hermes found himself in trouble with the gods.
When speaking of hermeneutics, it is important to understand that it is a view or rational construction of the observer. Farkas (1983) explains, "…hermeneutics used to be the study of methods used in interpreting texts which, because they belonged to a different culture, were difficult to interpret" (p. 263). Texts used in biblical scriptures often had philosophical significance to theories. Hermeneutics became a philosophical approach focusing on the interpretive activity of men. Jardine (1992), professor of political analysis, writes:
"The returning of life to its original difficulty is a returning of the possibility of the living Word. It is a return to the essential generativity of human life, a sense of life in which there is always something left to say, with all the difficulty, risk, and ambiguity that such generativity entails. Hermeneutic inquiry is thus concerned with the ambiguous nature of life itself." (Slattery, 2006, p. 115)
Different perspectives of this philosophy often entail different opinions, beliefs, and values. Past experiences, cultural norms, and family dynamics influence values and behaviors. Religious experiences and denominational regulations govern mental processes and shade interpretations of religious text. "Hermeneutics, in its broadest formulation, is the theory of interpreting oral traditions, verbal communications, and aesthetic products" (Slattery, 2006, p. 130).
History and Evolution of Hermeneutics
Throughout history hermeneutics has been used primarily for understanding religious and canonical writings. People are influenced by social, cultural, and psychological factors; understanding this early hermeneutic scholars attempted to determine the original meanings of religious texts (Slattery, 2006). A full understanding of these influences on an author's writing, and the original message, has evolved over time as well. Proper hermenutics can help ensure what the writer is trying to say and avoid errors of interpretation (Hommel, nd.). Hermeneutics, as a process, has shifted from focusing on text from a scientific approach of determining meaning to a postmodern understanding represented through a cyclical interpretation (Slattery, 2006).
As a scientific form of questioning during the nineteenth century traditional hermeneutics was almost exclusively used for understanding religious texts and non-canonical writings within the historical period in which they were written (Slattery, 2006, p. 133). These texts were investigated with “the belief that absolute meaning could be uncovered” (Slattery, 2006, p. 132). A focus was placed on developing an “authoritative text interpretation”, particularly for religious texts (Slattery, 2006, p. 132). For example, the Torah was interpreted using the allegorical method to determine meaning though linguistic and grammatical components (Slattery, 2006, p. 133). The purpose of such interpretations was to attempt a true understanding of the author's intentions. Scholars were in essence attempting to clear the muddy waters found in the distance between an author's original meaning and a contemporary readers cloudy interpretations. Like the childhood game of telephone the original meaning from the author's original time is often unclear.
An early example of hermeneutics use in religious texts can be found in early Christian interpreters attempts to confirm their belief salvation rested in Jesus Christ. Different groups began to interpret the books of the bible in multiple ways: historically, grammatically, and spiritually. Additionally, during the 5th century, St. Augustine of Hippo introduced a philosophy of language in which the “sign” literally pointed to the “thing” (Slattery, 2006, p. 133). This was the beginning of the development of semiotics, the study of language and how it relates to signs, symbols, and historical representation (Slattery, 2006, p. 133). Postmodern semioticians have a different point of view and use critical semiotics in which “attention is given to cultural conventions or codes, that in turn, generate the signs that serve as the basic unit of communication" (Slattery, 2006, p. 133). Like hermeneutics, semiotics has also become an analysis of power and the ways in which meaning is constructed.
In the 13th century St. Thomas Aquinas became an authority in the use of literal interpretations of texts, similar to St. Augustine. These interpretations became the “accurate bearer of Truth” (Slattery, 2006, p. 134). In keeping with his tradition, the Roman Catholic Church became the “ultimate decision on the criteria and the validity of results of biblical interpretation” (Jeanrond, quoted in Slattery, 2006, p. 134). Aquinas’s views made it easier for church authorities to control biblical interpretations.
During the Protestant Reformation, the reliance on literal, authoritative interpretations of biblical texts began to wane. Schleiermacher (1768-1834) rejected all extratextual authorities as illegitimate and attempted to have individuals interpret the scriptures. He introduced the idea that hermeneutics is the "art of understanding the sense of the text" (Slattery, 2006, p. 136). This paved the way for curriculum theories that included autobiography, auto ethnography, and respect for the judgment of teachers and interpretation of students in the classroom. In the 1970s, Gadamer drew attention to pre-understandings, which influence interpretation of texts. Gadamer suggests that, "we must approach texts with our pre-understandings, suspend our prejudices, and engage in dialogue" (Slattery, 2006, p. 137). He also suggested that the universal human task is "genuine speaking", or saying something to actually reach another human person.
Although literal and authorative interpretations have waned, personal Bible studies still occur and a need for interpretation still exist. Today some scholars of the Bible believe that it affirms its own clarity (Hommel, n.d.). However, interpretation does not occur without cultural and historical perspectives in mind (Hommel, n.d.). The fact of the matter is our own beliefs and experiences mold our interpretations. Hommel uses ten principles in which to protect Biblical interpretation from personal beliefs and experiences, but for time sake we will discuss a few. He states that generally we as individuals take things at face value which is a common since approach and, therefore, should be used (Hommel, n.d.). Scripture should not be taken out of context to prove a particular point of interest (Hommel, n.d.). Thirdly, plain scriptures can be used as a guide to interpret less clear scripture (Hommel, n.d.). Interpretation of scripture will never be exact but applying these principles and the other principles we can lessen the error of interpretation (Hommel, n.d.). However, the real message of the Bible is not how we interpretet it, but as Gadamer suggests, one of its greatest uses is in learning how to be genuine with spoken words so that other people can be reached.
This relates to the idea of education as Bildung, or growth and development, which "emphasizes what is done to individuals rather than what individual persons actually do" (Slattery, 2006, p. 137). Gadamer's model of hermeneutics sought to open up more possibilities rather than close them like traditional models. Later, in the 1980s, Ricoeur argued that the sense of the text must be validated by explanation. He believed that a "movement from a structuralist science to a structuralist philosophy is bound to fail" (Slattery, 2006, p. 137). Personal horizons merge with the text in Ricoeur's view, which moves hermeneutics to a more human understanding. This led to three concerns of hermeneutics, which would be connected by Haggerson and Bowman: understanding, explanation, and critical assessment.
Matthew Fox, a former member of the Dominican order who was expelled in the 1990s, used hermeneutics to interpret the bible in ways that went against the Catholic Church's interpretation. One major way was to say that humans are basically good, while traditional doctrine teaches that we are born into sin and can only remove this burden by following church doctrine. Fox reached this conclusion by hermeneutically re-examining scripture and Aquinas’s work through a contemporary lens. The work of Fox will hopefully lead to more varied hermeneutical interpretations in theology and other areas. His different hermeneutic view of theological texts mirrors the interpretations taking place in education and curriculum.
Hermeneutics & Education
According to Slattery (2006), "The art and science of interpretation is the central enterprise of school curriculum" (p. 116). Hermeneutics connects with education on several levels and in multiple categories. "A hermeneutic perspective (the art of interpreting and understanding across differences) should be considered in any educational discussion," teachers, administrators, and district personnel often face a variety of circumstances in which decisions can determine what the outcome will be: positive, negative, or neutral (Zoreda, 1999, p. 3). Slattery (2006) believes that "educators must understand the multiple approaches to hermeneutics that influence their curricular decisions" in order to provide an engaging curriculum for students (p. 123). According to Wilhelm Dilthey, as cited in Boyles, reconstruction must take place to unite the past with the present. The true task of hermeneutics is seen through this reconstruction (1994). Gadamer, as cited in Boyles, proposes teachers use hermeneutics in the classroom by altering their traditional roles of depositors of information to that of intellectual interpreters. Rather than educators possessing one absolute meaning of a text, students can construct their own meanings of literature based off their personal experiences (1994). Literacy in a school's curriculum poses another example of hermeneutic decision. The resulting philosophical problems about the meaning and value of aesthetic entities are compounded when the activity of literary criticism enters the picture (Hoy, 1982). Validating multiple student interpretations within classroom discussion exhibits hermeneutic controversy. Likewise, decisions on which texts to include in the syllabus, which interpretations to examine, and which interpretations to ignore are also hermeneutic decisions (Slattery, 2006). Shaun Gallagher (1992) maintains that one task of hermeneutics is to "identify the different factors, including the epistemological, sociological, cultural, and linguistic factors, that condition the process of interpretation (p. 5). According to Gallagher (1992), interpretation is a process wherein no one element exists in itself and understanding literacy involves bridging multiple circumstances. David Hoy (1982) argues that the methodological questions raised in hermeneutics probe into the very possibility of thinking historically. Thus, "whether history is viewed as continuous or discontinuous (involving radical paradigm shifts) will make a difference to the kinds of explanations a discipline gives and to the extent to which it searches for causes and general principles" (p.7).
Today universities have incorporated multicultural teacher education (MTE) courses in their teacher pre-service programs, that take on a hermeneutic disposition. MTE courses follows the hermeneutics beliefs of Hans-Georg Gadamer. The flexibility of hermeneutics allows pre-service teachers to be better equipped with the skills to address the ever-changing American schooling demographic. Hermeneutics allows teachers to grasp the idea of transformation and openness in their teaching. Multiculturalism and hermeneutics together encompass different perspectives and personal experiences that coincide within a community or a classroom (Pickett & York, 2011).
Flexibility is important when speaking of education. Predictions can be made, but often, unforeseen circumstances can be brought upon by moods, emotions, differences, and experiences, due to the dynamic nature of the classroom environment. Classrooms are influenced by the culture, background knowledge, and ideologies that students bring with them into an ever broadening racial, ethnic, cultural, and special needs classroom (Lin, Lake, & Rice, 2008). "The postmodern understandings of hermeneutics as an investigation into the ambiguous nature of being and knowledge now inform and enrich contemporary curriculum paradigms" (Slattery, 2006, p.115). At the same time teachers must be aware of the background knowledge that they bring to their own interpretations that their students may not possess yet. Robert Ryley’s article about hermeneutics in the classroom discusses an instance in which he felt his students were misinterpreting a poem because they lacked the background knowledge about the poet’s style that he had. “And the teacher will be a better teacher for understanding that the source of his authority is not necessarily his exquisite sensitivity to poetic values or his God-given ability to intuit the Truth at sight, but his experience as a reader. It is this experience that the teacher ought to share with his students, neither permitting their ignorance to lead them into fan-tastic error, nor demanding that they discover inside the poem what can only be discovered outside of it” (Ryley, 1974, p. 50).
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, opened the door to the high-stakes testing, meaning that there are important consequenses for students and educators resulting from test performance (Spring, 2010). According to Ken Goodman one of the most alarming facts of the No Child Left Behind Act is that it is unconstitutional, because it leaves education to the states. It established a national curriculum and methodology in reading and math (Cited by Spring, 2010). Taking this concern into consideration, it can be determined that in the current-high stakes testing model of education, a popular type of curriculum used in schools is “teacher-proof” curriculum. Teacher-proof curriculum does not provide teachers with the ability to develop lessons that promote meaningful philosophical discussions. According to Joel Spring (2010) "the controlling power of standards and tests determine what will be taught in the classroom, ensure that teachers teach the content specified in the state's academic standards...If students do poorly on high-stakes tests, then teachers and school administrators are blamed. For this reason, both teachers and administrators are motivated to ensure that classroom instruction complies with academic standards and provides students with the specific knowledge and skills required by the tests" (Spring 2010). Hermeneutic inquiry is essential in the development of curriculum in order to provide students with the tools necessary for “understanding the text, the lived experience, and the self in relation to the Other” (Slattery, 2006, p. 141). As an educator if one thinks about Hermeneutics before writing lesson plans it might help to consider the diversity of the classroom and one’s own ability to create creative and interactive lessons. Hermeneutic inquiry should be the main reason for teachers to become creative regardless of the curriculum, and the pressures of standardization and accountability.
Another example of how No Child Left Behind has impacted curriculum and how the teacher proof curriculum prevents teachers from developing lessons that promote meaningful philosophical discussions was found in an issue of the San Antonio Express-News. According to the newspaper article a 64-page report developed by the Social Studies Faculty Collaborative of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board stated “the controversial curriculum standards approved by the State Board of Education last year represent a widespread pattern of neglect of college readiness skills” (Scharrer, 2011). Moreover, according to Erekson (2011) who wrote the report with others emphasized how the State Board of Education ignored college readiness standards and to help social science teachers sort through the confusing curriculum standards. For example, Erekson (2011) pointed out that new curriculum standards asks students to provide information at the knowledge and comprehension level concerning curriculum standards for the Declaration of Independence. The standards simply ask students to list colonial American grievances, to understand their purpose and importance and to explain the significance of several dates (Erekson, 2011).
Erekson (2011) suggested that the standards should guide the students towards higher level thinking by addressing American Revolution history by asking students to analyze questions such as : How did colonists transition from thinking of themselves as British to thinking of themselves as Americans? This way the students now have something to think about before responding to such a question versus answering questions that require a laundry list of memorized dates, locations, and people. By answering such thought provoking questions it also gives the students an opportunity to reflect on their heritage and what it means to be an American if they happen to be the children of immigrants or immigrants themselves. In the arena of hermeneutics such emphasis on teaching students to provide more than a one-sided analysis provides the students with so much more by way of allowing them to compare and contrast the transition from being British to becoming American than just remembering what July 4, 1776 represents. Moreover, this fits into what Slattery stated that “museums, like school curricula, are complex places of learning that can be used either to advance critical thinking or to support the status quo of the political and cultural agenda” (Slattery, 2006, p. 118). In other words, by depriving the Smithsonian Institute’s Air and Space director Martin Harwit the opportunity to represent the bombing of Hiroshima from a different perspective so that it may stimulate discussion amongst visitors or amongst a class of high school students, state boards of education win by stifling teenage thought and creativity by expecting the students to only memorize that on August 6, 1945, the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan.
By adding a discussion of the bombing of Hiroshima to their curriculum social studies teachers provide the students an opportunity to formulate their own ideas about whether it was necessary for the United States to drop two atomic bombs on Japan. Based on Slattery's contention, it was not Harwit's goal to influence anyone about how World War II should have ended, but to "allow a discussion of the various historical accounts in museums, classrooms, and school curriculum" (Slattery, 2006, p. 119). This should also be the mindset of the educators in social studies when presenting a historical lesson. Educators can also add historical pictures or videos of reasonable content of the blast to the lesson to stimulate student curiosity and thirst for historical knowledge in a way that makes hermeneutics applicable in the curriculum.
Video 1. Atomic Bomb and Hiroshima Video 2. Hiroshima After the Bomb Color Footage 1945
Changes in the environment can affect the atmosphere of the school. Methodology, varying with individuals or groups of students, creates a unique life-world tangent in the classroom. Within the many shades of gray, one must consider that the "selection of textbooks and educational media reflects prejudice in favor of particular styles, methodologies, politics, or worldviews" (2006). Knowledge is no longer finite; curriculum is now open to reflections acknowledging that "everything requires recursive interpretation" (Slattery, 2006, p. 141). The opening of curriculum to reflection and criticism affords students and teachers a new, greater opportunity to exercise power in the classroom, which the high-stakes testing environment does not provide.
In education, postmodern hermeneutics gives the power of interpretation to students. Teachers and the curriculum no longer decide how texts and other media will be interpreted in the classroom. Because of this it is important that teachers understand and value where their students are coming from. Dimi Metro-Roland provides an excellent hypothetical situation to describe this process in which a middle-aged teacher attempts to gain an appreciation for rap music in order to better understand his students. (Metro-Roland, 2010) “This, in turn, puts the teacher’s own self-understanding and prejudices at play… In the process, the very lens through which he sees and experiences the world has changed, even if only a little” (Metro-Roland, 2010, p. 17). Cross-cultural understanding requires risk because educators can't be entirely sure where the conversation will lead or the ways that their own views and prejudices will be challenged (Metro-Roland, 2010). Hermeneutics also allows the traditional curriculum and structure of knowledge to be challenged as well.
Postmodern hermeneutics may be seen as a threat to those in the old guard of education and curriculum, so it is critical to proceed with caution. However, "Philosophical hermeneutics and deconstruction should be understood as complementary postmodern philosophies, as mutually supportive descriptions of the hermeneutic situation" (Feldman, 2000, p.3). Hermeneutics in education is controversial because it gives everyone the power to interpret texts. The teacher is no longer the sole decision maker in the understanding of texts, but instead students also become engaged in the text. Hermeneutics in education provides students the means to analyze and find meaning in a text on their own. The goal of the hermeneutic process is the pursuit of deeper understanding (Slattery, 2006). Students must now learn to engage the curriculum. They must not simply learn how to memorize facts and dates but must be allowed to explore history from multiple viewpoints.
In order for students to be able to develop the ability to understand and decipher different kinds of text, they must be given the opportunity to become active participants of their own learning. To achieve this goal, students not only need to be exposed to a high vairety of literature, but also, must be given the opportunity to be involved with content through manipulation of materials and most important social interaction. Chiari and Nuzzo (2010) present a correlation between Hermeneutics and the Constructivist approach; "To the extent that psychological constructivism views the person as a meaning-generating being, and interpreter it has a point of contact with hermeneutics, defined, as it is, as the theory of interpretation of meaning. However, the relationship between constructivism and hermeneutics con go even further" (Chiari & Nuzzo, 2010).
Rasking (2002) quotes Chiari and Nazzo (1996) explaining a category of constructivism known as Hermeneutic Constructivism; "Hermeneutic constructivists do not believe in the existence of an observer independent reality. They consider knowledge a product of the linguistic activity of a community of observers. Thus, there can be as many knowledge systems as there are groups discursively negotiating them. In hermeneutic approaches to constructivism, the roles of language, discourse, and communication become central in understanding how knowledge systems are developed and maintained. There are many forms of hermeneutic constructivism, but they all share certain fundamental premises (Rasking, 2002). By allowing the students to interact with each other, and by providing experiences that challenge their thinking, students will be able to experience higher self efficacy for learning. By creating an environment in the classroom focusing on the Constructivist and Hermeneutic approach, teachers will give their students an opportunity to succeed academically.
Hermeneutics, Controversy, and Defining it?
Hermeneutics is controversial. It gives the power to interpret texts to all, not just a select few authority figures. This weakens the hold the authority figures maintain on their constituents. No longer are the "lay people" forced to rely upon the interpretations of these authorities. Rather, hermeneutics provides them with an approach to analyze and find meaning in a text on their own. "National ideologies, religious practices, financial arrangements, and personal freedoms, among other things, may be challenged or restricted" (Slattery, 2006, p. 125). The interpretive process is also problematic, as the interpreter may try to make sense out of a text by applying contemporary mores and standards when creating their understanding of a text; conversely, other interpreters may take a "textualist" or "intentionalist" approach, whereby the interpreter attempts to understand the text from the point of view of the original writer of the document. Neither approach is wrong nor right. However, both can lead to varying interpretations and understandings. As a result, "hermeneutic interpretation is not only controversial, but it can be violent and deadly at times" (Slattery, 2006, p. 124).
According to Schrift (1990) Fredrich Schleiermacher and Wilhelm Dilthey are credited with taking the first steps toward developing a general hermeneutic methodology (Schrift, 1990). At its core, hermeneutic inquiry is creative. "Hermeneutic inquiry is a creative act, not just a technical function" (Slattery, 2006, p. 141). It is a circular "process" that Schleiermacher identified as having three main elements. First, it is grounded upon the creative nature of the interpreter. Next, it requires an interpretation of the meaning of language and language's signs and symbols (semiotics) and a recognition of pivotal role languages place in understanding. And third, it requires and grows from the interplay of the interpreters in part ("text") and in whole ("the socio-historic reality") during the interpretive process (O'Leary, 2007). "It is circular because it involves a constant movement from us, the interpreter(s), to the interpreted and back again, thereby implying that every interpretation is itself reinterpreted. It is indeterminate because that loop of interpretation has no end" (Gregory, 2009). Hermeneutics gives the interpreter creative power over language and ideas. Schrift (1990) explains that Dilthey, for his part, follows Schleiermacher in calling for a general hermeneutics, but so doing, he broadens the scope of hermeneutical applications....Dilthey criticizes Schleiermacher for limiting hermeneutics to the analysis of understanding which is a reshaping or reconstruction on the basis of its relationship to the process of literary creations. Dilthey regards hermeneutics as having a wider epistemological application than that acknowledged by Schleiermacher, and he broadened the scope of the methodology of understanding to facilitate the acquisition of knowledge of all aspects of mental life (Schrift, 1990).
Six ways to Describe Hermeneutics
Slattery, Kransy, and O'Malley (2007, p. 543-549) have identified six ways to describe hermeneutics:
Elements of Hermeneutics to Consider
There are several important factors to take into consideration when using hermeneutics. First, hermeneutics is often used to analyze historical events. This can be extremely difficult because history can look very different depending on who is looking at it and on how the details of the historical event are presented. Fish (2005) asserts that '"any conclusion you reach about the intention behind a text can always be challenged by someone else who marshals different evidence for an alternative intention"' (Slattery, 2006, p. 126). Hermeneutics presents the historical account as accurately as possible; taking into consideration all viewpoints and factors of the original situation. This is a very difficult task to accomplish, which is why “historical analysis varies from text to text and nation to nation" (Slattery, 2006, p. 116). Depending upon the way historical curriculum is presented in our schools, this information “can be used either to advance critical thinking or to support the status quo of the political and cultural agenda" (Slattery, 2006, p. 118). Schools must strive to present different viewpoints of history, even if at times this information might be controversial or painful. Historical curriculum in the classroom should not aim to settle any historical debates, but rather allow for a discussion of various historical accounts. A perfect of example of social studies curriculum to allow for various historical accounts would be to give the students an assignment asking them if they believe slavery in another form exists in the United States today. Of course one would have to take into consideration that the assignment would concern our southern neighbors in Mexico and how the encomienda system (indigenous people required to provide tribute and free labor to an encomendero, or land owner) (Merrill and Miro, 1996) established by the Spanish Crown after they conquered Mexico and how migrant farm workers are treated today. This assignment should not to be given in the context to settle any historical debates but to open up the minds of the students (especially if the subject matter directly relates to them: video 3) as to how certain historical occurrences repeat themselves and for them to formulate their own conclusions if they believe slavery exists in another form in the United States today.
Photo 4. Encomiendas in New Spain Video 3. Fingers to the Bone: Child Farmworkers in the United States
A second element to consider is what material is actually included in the curriculum and how this material is presented to the student. “Educators must understand the multiple approaches to hermeneutics that influence their curricular decisions, conscious or subconscious, and must reflect deeply on the social, political, historical, and global implications of their interpretive acts in order to provide an appropriate, engaging, and just curriculum for students” (Slattery, 2006, p. 123).Teachers are charged with helping students to recognize and navigate the intentional and accidental biases, prejudices, viewpoints, and values that accompany every text. Teachers must also alert students to the fact that these same biases and values are present in people, including community and national leaders, teachers, and classmates. The individual who decides what material and interpretations to include in school curriculum and how to present this information to students holds the power. Hermeneutics would aim to include material from multiple sources and then present this information to students so that they might generate their own philosophies about the information. In January of 2011 news broke that a book editor was going to take the word "nigger" out of Mark Twain's classic work Huckleberry Finn. This book was written by Twain in the late 1800s during a time when the "n" word was used often in the south. If educators are going to teach students about biases, prejudices, viewpoints, and values that are part of every writers work, then we must provide textual sources that have not been altered from their original form. If we are providing "watered-down" versions of literature then what conscious or subconscious message are we sending our students. Hermeneutics allows for students to develop their own interpretations of text to better understand what ideas they are being presented. Educators should not silence the voices of authors because they are writing from their perspectives and students should have the opportunity to draw their own conclusions.
Finally, one must remember that different people can view the exact same information and then each take the information in completely different directions. Every individual thinks of information in very different ways because of their own experiences, beliefs, and value systems. This does not make one person’s view better than another’s. It just means that each person has the right to view information differently. If administrators and teachers would collaboratively work through "a more horizontal than vertical conformation with an atmosphere of collegiality--democratic cooperation--instead of a marked polarity of leader vs. followers." the results would yield shared meaning-making based on joint discussion (Zoreda, 1999). Hermeneutics allows each individual this right, and this is one reason that hermeneutics can be so controversial. In many instances, societal leaders are seen as having the correct answer or knowing the right procedure, but "who decides which higher authority is legitimate" (Slattery, 2006, p. 127)? Leaders seldom react mildly when they are questioned about the basis for their proclamations of fact or the legitimacy of their positions of power, so the questioning and interpretive nature of hermeneutics often incites conflict. “Postmodernism contends that truth with a small 't' rather than a capital 'T' is a more appropriate understanding for the postmodern world” (Slattery, 2006, p. 123) because it allows individuals to experience their own subjective truth without imposing it on others as an absolute, objective Truth. Gadamer stated "[t]o understand someone else is to see the justice, the truth, of their position. And this is what transforms us" (Kerdeman, 1998).
Postmodern Hermeneutics
Haggerson and Bowman bring these three concerns together in a postmodern context. As we seek understanding, we examine multiple explanations and critical assessments from different viewpoints. Haggerson and Bowman contend that knowing is a continuum - there is not end point. Rather, knowing and understanding are constantly in flux and change. Knowledge is "provisional, contextual, and temporal" (Slattery, 2006, p. 139). They use the metaphor of a running stream viewed under four paradigms as an explanation for these various viewpoints. In the first paradigm, rational/theoretical, the researcher is on the edge of the stream simply watching while making generalizations and predictions about the flow. In the second paradigm, mythological/practical, the researcher actually experiences the stream in a boat. In the third, the evolutionary/transformational paradigm, the researcher becomes a participant with the river. In the fourth, normative/critical paradigm, the researcher crosses the river and now has an experience to share. Curriculum theorists work through these paradigms to hermeneutically interpret curriculum (Slattery, 2006).
The application of postmodern hermeneutics to curriculum also has impacts on the methods of research and inquiry that are considered acceptable to the community of teachers and other interpreters. The traditional, deductive reasoning approach to research cannot be the only valid viewpoint in a postmodern context. Instead, postmodern hermeneutics requires the recognition that the valuation of deductive research is, itself, based on a set of norms and traditions. This form of reasoning and research cannot be valued more highly than others. As Slattery (2006) states, "no longer will objective, experimental projects that attempt to verify hypotheses for the purpose of articulating generalizations...dominate educational research" (p. 140). Postmodern hermeneutics recognizes and values the importance of subjective understanding. It "conceives of understanding as an ontological (study of being) problem rather than an epistemological (study of knowledge) problem" (Slattery, 2006, p. 130).
The community of interpreters and consumers of the hermeneutic process cannot simply be the bureaucratic and authoritarian figures of traditional academic discourse and curriculum development. Instead, the hermeneutic process requires a more egalitarian model where a community of minds comes together to analyze and reflect on the interpretations set forth by others, correcting and collaborating with each other to create understanding and meaning. In these communities, norms are questioned and power relationships are scrutinized. This cycle of interpretation, uncovering additional norms, and reinterpretation can only take place in a community where all are empowered. Educators and interpreters will come together and "engage each other in the process of understanding the text, the lived experience, and the self in relation to the Other" to develop a curriculum that is empowering and liberating, not "teacher-proofed" and constrained by the objectives and standards of state-mandated tests (Slattery, 2006, p. 141). Perfect examples of this philosophy can be found in the following video trailers:
Video 4. Dead Poets' Society Video 5. Teachers
In the Dead Poets' Society trailer Robin Williams persuades the students to climb on his desk to see life, not from his perspective or anyone else's for that matter, but to see life from their own perspective and quotes Thoreau who said "most men lead lives of quiet desperation" (Robin Williams as cited in Dead Poets' Society, 1989). In other words a community of thinkers become empowered to create understanding and meaning, rather than a community created by one person or one group set in their ways, controlling the actions of others very much like the governing board at the private school where Williams teaches.
In the Teachers trailer Nick Nolte challenges his students to create their own media to symbolize what is wrong with their school. He gives them carte blanche to express their ideas through essays, poems, songs, photos, etc. When one student takes him up on his offer and produces a photo essay of what is wrong with the school, of course it reaches the school paper and lands Nolte in hot water. Moreover, the rest of the scene centers around the argument that the teacher's job is not to reach one student, but to push the students through the system. In the area of interpretation, the clash exists between what one teacher believes and the importance of reaching one student versus the school administration and their interpretation that one student is not worth saving (Teachers, 1984). Note: Only view first five minutes.
Finally, it is important to realize that those who cling to more traditional forms of curriculum development are likely to be resistant to hermeneutics. Hermeneutics "uncovers, interprets, clarifies, deconstructs, and challenges all fields of study" (Slattery, 2006, p. 142). Those who benefit from the power structures already in place in society can be fearful when their place of authority or the source of their power is brought into question. This can lead to danger for practitioners of hermeneutics who must interact with more traditional authority figures in their workplaces. We should all be aware of the possibility of this conflict but it should not deter us from applying postmodern hermeneutics to our work in the classroom.
References
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Photo 1.The Thinker
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